THE DRUPE-FRUITS 139 



a distinct fruit from other Domestica plums. The trees are low 

 with compact round heads; bark dark in color and breaking 

 into deep fissures; shoots thick and do not lose their pubes- 

 cence. The leaves are broad, wrinkled, coarsely crenate, and 

 sometimes doubly serrate, a character not usually found in 

 domestica plums. The fruit is round or oval, green or yellow, 

 sometimes with a faint blush, stems short and pubescent, suture 

 shallow, bloom thin, texture firm, quality the best, stone free 

 or clinging. The leading varieties are Reine Claude, Bavay, 

 Spaulding, Yellow^ Gage, Washington, McLaughlin, Hand, 

 Peters, and Imperial Gage. 



(2) The prunes. — A prune is any plum that can be cured, 

 without removing the pit, into a firm long-keeping product. 

 This classification throws all plums with a high percentage of 

 solids, especially of sugar, into this group. The trees are vari- 

 ous, the distinguishing characters of the group being in the 

 fruits which are large, oval, with the one side straighter than 

 the other, usually much compressed with a shallow suture, blue 

 or purple, with a heavy bloom, flesh greenish-yelloAV or golden, 

 firm, quality good, stone free. Typical varieties of this group 

 in America are Italian, German, Agen, Tragedy, Tennant, Sugar, 

 Giant and Hungarian. 



(3) The Perdrigon plums constitute an old but comparatively 

 unimportant group. The name comes from an ancient geo- 

 graphical division of Italy. The trees are various, mostly large, 

 spreading, vigorous and hardy. The plums are of medium size, 

 round or oval, dark blue with a heavy bloom, firm flesh, quality 

 rather poor, stone free or clinging. Few of these Perdrigons 

 are grown in America, of which Goliath, Late Orleans, and 

 Royal Tours are best known ; even these, however, are now repre- 

 sented only in collections. 



(4) The Imperatrice plums might almost be combined with 

 the Perdrigons. The chief differences are in the larger and 

 more oval fruits, and the smaller, more compact, more produc- 

 tive and hardier trees. The name comes from the old Impera- 

 trice plum now little grown, but formerly of note as one of 

 the first of the blue plums to receive recognition. This poorly 

 defined assemblage contains a greater number of varieties than 

 any of the divisions outlined for the reason that the color, size 



